The Manhattan side of the bridge blinked out at 3.35am as a vandal covered the lights illuminating the American flag

By 3.42am, the lights above both towers on the Brooklyn Bridge were out

By 11am, NYPD officers had taken down the white flags. They were later replaced with new American flags

They promptly hoisted up an American flag - atop the bridge - replacing the Old Glory that was stolen from the New York icon

It's unclear how the vandals slipped past the police officers and security cameras guarding the bridge

'If flying a white flag atop the Brooklyn Bridge is someone’s idea of a joke, I’m not laughing,' he told the New York Post.

'The public safety of our city is of paramount importance, particularly our landmarks and bridges that are already known to be high-risk targets. We will not surrender our public safety to anyone, at any time.'

In April, New York artist Brendan Fagan - aka Justin Supine - scaled the Ed Koch-Queensboro Bridge and planted an art installation at the top. He was later arrested and charged with reckless endangerment and criminal trespass.